Egypt   3500 B.C.

It was the Egyptians, around 3500 B.C., who first thought of sticking several thinner layers of wood together to make one thick layer. They originally did this during a shortage of quality wood, gluing veneers (very thin layers of good wood) over not-so-good wood. What we know as plywood today was invented by Emmanuel Nobel, father of Alfred Nobel, the famous inventor of dynamite and founder of the Nobel Prize. Emmanuel realised that several thinner layers of wood bonded together would be stronger that one single thick layer of wood. His idea is now a staple of the construction industry, used in floors and roofing.